Hello!
I'm new here and have read thru many threads, so apologies if I've missed a relevant one to my question!

My husband and I have been married 9 years; I'm a dual US/UK citizen and have lived in the UK for 20+ years. We want to move to the south-east (GA, FL, AL). I will work and I hope to secure a job before we move. My husband would like to be able to work part-time so we want to get a working visa for him with a view to Green Card and eventually citizenship. Can we start the process from here in the UK before we physically move? Or do we need a residential address in the US first?

I have contacted a couple of immigration services companies but not sure I need to pay for that as it could be "simple"!

Any information would be helpful. Thanks in advance

Welcome! I suggest you head on over to the Marriage Based Visas section to find out how to bring your husband to the US on a spouse visa. That is going to be a far simpler method than trying to obtain a working visa for him, which will require sponsorship by an employer.

One big suggestion -- do not use an "immigration service." If needs must, use an immigration lawyer who is a member of AILA, but the good folks in the Marriage forum will lead you through the process and you may find that you don't need any outside help. Good luck!

You should sponsor your husband for a spouse visa which will then allow him to work
You first need to complete an I-130:

https://www.uscis.gov/green-card/gre...-of-us-citizen

If you are applying from the UK and YOU do not have job then to fulfill the financial requirements you could us a joint sponsor such as US resident or relative.

Thank you so much! Great info & advice. Duly noted re: immigration service. Spouse visa sounds the right way to go.

Thank you so much! This is great info. Spouse visa is the way to go! Very grateful for your advice.

Another vote for spousal visa. Unless your husband has specialist skills, sponsorship from an employer is unlikely tbh, but a spouse visa is usually much easier. If you petition him, then he'll get an immigrant visa and become a green card holder immediately upon entry, so work authorised straight away.

This is a really good overview of the whole process, figure about 18-24 months overall as a rough guide. https://travel.state.gov/content/tra...-petition.html

I'll move this thread to the Marriage Based Visas sub forum, so you can ask any questions as you go through the process.

Best of luck.

Thank you so much for your advice & reply. I really appreciate it. I’m so
sorry it’s taken me ages to reply. Life has been hectic last 10 days or so!

Thank you so much for your reply & advice. And apologies for such a delay replying. We’re full steam ahead with plans now!

You not only can, you must start, and pretty much complete, the visa process from the UK (outside the US). If your husband were to arrive in the US and the immigration officer found out that your husband was planning to remain in the US, but hadn't bothered to complete a visa application, he would almost certainly be denied entry and put back on a plane to the UK.

That said it is perfectly acceptable for your husband to visit the US during the visa application process (which will likely take about a year), but your husband will have to return to the UK to complete the visa process, even if you had, for example, bought a home and/or started working and therefore remained in the US.

Quote:

.... I have contacted a couple of immigration services companies but not sure I need to pay for that as it could be "simple"! ...

So long as you understand enough English to be able to read the forms and complete them, and your husband doesn't have complications such as a criminal record or a history of drug use, there is absolutely no need for you to pay for a lawyer to help with the process; and bear in mind, even if you did pay for assistance, the lawyer is just going to send you their own forms asking you for the information to complete the form for you. .... And you can post any questions here and people will share their knowledge and experience.

With a spouse visa, which gets him permanent residence aka "a green card" upon his arrival in the US, your husband will be able to do almost anything a US citizen can, except [1] take one of very few jobs that federal government says you must be a citizen to be allowed to do (which is basically anything working with classified information), and [2] vote in elections, and [3] run for elected office.